Located next door to The Citadel, a military college with a long and storied history in Charleston, Kempton of Charleston is benefiting from a unique partnership formed with the school.
As part of earning community service hours, cadets from The Citadel started to visit regularly with residents of Kempton of Charleston last fall. The senior living community offers assisted living, memory care, rehabilitation and long-term skilled care.
The cadet volunteers walk a short distance to Kempton of Charleston, where they receive a list of names of residents who are open to a visit. The cadets knock on residents’ doors to see if they are interested in having a chat, playing a game, going for a walk, or participating in another activity that might appeal to them.
“They do whatever the resident is up for on that day,” says Lindsay French, executive director of Kempton of Charleston.
One of those residents who enjoys interacting with the cadets is Ben Moise, 81, who attended The Citadel for three years in the 1960s.
“I’ve found out that a lot has changed at The Citadel, but a lot has not,” says Moise, noting the school’s uniforms are much the same as they were when he was a student.
He says he often chats with the students about their education at The Citadel, hobbies, families, and about his former career as a game warden.
Sometimes they talk about a memoir he wrote called Ramblings of a Low Country Game Warden in South Carolina.
“The cadets are interested in my book,” he says.
One of the volunteers from The Citadel is Kanyia Purefoy, 20, a sophomore.
“I like talking to seniors and the staff is very nice,” she says. “I try to go on a regular basis so they can recognize me and say to me, ‘Oh. You’re back!”
Another volunteer, Mason Floyd, 20, a junior, has learned a lot about life and history during his visits. He chatted with one resident who has told him about life during World War II, the Cold War, and the Vietnam War.
“He was nine during World War II and he remembers listening to reports about it on the radio,” says Floyd, adding that making connections with older individuals has opened a new world to him.
“They are full of knowledge and wisdom,” he says. “Talking with them broadens your horizons. These people have been there and done that. They know a lot.”
Although Kempton of Charleston provides the volunteers with a list of ice breaker-type questions they can ask residents, Purefoysays the conversations have always flowed easily.
“We talk as if we’ve known each other for years,” she says.
French says many of the residents are happy to interact with young people from such a well-known institution.
“They enjoy sharing their story with the next generation and they are pretty passionate about The Citadel and support it,” she says.
The bond Kempton of Charleston has formed with The Citadel is growing. The senior living community expects, this spring, to begin hosting volunteers from The Citadel’s Swain Department of Nursing who will volunteer at Kempton of Charleston to provide clinical services.
Moise says the program benefits both young and old.
“The program has value,” he says. “The residents get to communicate with the younger generation and learn their ideas on things and the young people get ideas from the older generation.”
Even though Floyd has earned all of the community service hours he needs, he plans to go back to visit Kempton of Charleston and continue those conversations.
His time visiting with residents always flies by.
“It’s kind of like a coffee-shop conversation and before you know it, the time is up,” he says.
Moise, for one, will be glad to see him or any of the students from The Citadel.
“They are a good, decent bunch of students,” he says. “They are cordial and polite.”
Kempton of Charleston
Kempton of Charleston is nestled amid the charming environs of Charleston, South Carolina—named by online financial firm WalletHub as the top place to retire in the U.S. With a range of amenities under one roof, and close to Charleston’s many cultural offerings, dining and shopping, the Kempton offers premier assisted living, memory care, respite care, rehabilitation, and skilled nursing. Kempton of Charleston is owned and operated by Liberty Senior Living, LLC, a division of Liberty Healthcare Management that specializes in senior living and retirement communities. To learn more about Kempton of Charleston visit www.KemptonOfCharleston.
